Commercial opportunities for carotenoid production by biotechnology

Over 600 different carotenoids have been found in natural sources. These compounds are normal constituents in microorganisms, algae, and higher plants as well as a number of animal species. With the inherent carotenoid biosynthetic capability of natural sources, the commercial biosynthesis of these compounds by appropriate organisms is a way to produce carotenoids that cannot easily be synthesized or cannot be produced economically by chemical synthetic techniques. With the new power of biotechnology and recombinant DNA technology, the biosynthetic capability of organisms to produce carotenoids can be enhanced. This paper reviews previous and current efforts to produce carotenoids by biotechnology. In addition, the use of recombinant DNA technology to increase or modify the carotenoid biosynthetic capability of different organisms is discussed.